December 28, 2009

ANOTHER FLORIDA ‘FIRST’ – In addition to long overdue recognition that the first Thanksgiving was in St. Augustine in 1565, Florida also can claim the first Christmas in North America. Hernando de Soto and his marauding Conquistadors celebrated Christmas on our soil in 1539. Notable credit goes to the 12 Spanish priests who accompanied them. Today, a plaque marks the site of the first Christmas service, which was near the Apalachee village of Anhayea.

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS – American Express recently launched the “OPEN for Government Contracts: Victory in Procurement (VIP) for Small Business” program. This program includes mentoring and networking opportunities, and an interactive, step-by-step online resource designed to help guide business owners through the government contracting process, from central contractor registration to generating repeat business with the federal government. For more information, visit http://govtcontracts.open.com/.

INCREASE YOUR EXPORTS – For qualified companies, the Export-Import bank of the United States can extend credit to international buyers, protect against nonpayment and free up credit for other business activities. For details, go online to http://tinyurl.com/eximbank or contact Paul Mitchell, Volusia County Economic Development, at (386) 248-8048 or pmitchell@co.volusia.fl.us.

IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS – The Center for Business and Industry at Daytona State College (DSC) is presenting “Skills for Supervising: A focus on People and Productivity” for four consecutive Thursdays beginning Jan. 14. The event will be on DSC's Daytona Beach campus. Subjects include diversity, motivating, perception, innovation, planning, budgeting, effective communications, teamwork and more. Since October 2009, nearly 700 local leaders, supervisors, managers, business owners and executives have attended this course. For more information or to register, contact Joanne Parker at (386) 506-4224 or by e-mail at parkerj@daytonastate.edu.

HOSPITALAR EXHIBITION – Enterprise Florida Inc. (EFI) is inviting Volusia County companies that produce or supply products, equipment, services or technology for hospitals, health clinics and laboratories to participate in Hospitalar 2010 – the leading health fair in Brazil and Latin America. EFI has space in the Florida section within the USA Pavilion to showcase your products and services to an audience of 86,000 visitors from 30 nations. EFI Target Sector Trade Event Grants are available to qualified companies. The deadline to register is March 5, but space and grant funds are limited. Contact Michael Schiffhauer at EFI for more information at mschiffhauer@eflorida.com. For other ideas and help regarding exports, contact Paul Mitchell, Volusia County Economic Development, at (386) 248-8048 or pmitchell@co.volusia.fl.us.

STRATEGIES FOR GROWTH – Highlighting the experiences of successful entrepreneurs, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and Dell Corporation have launched an online video series, "Strategies for Growth," that offers tools and strategies to help small business owners expand and create jobs. The video series highlights key topics critical to small business growth – business planning, government contracting, marketing, technology, exporting opportunities, and disaster recovery. The video series is available at the SBA's Web site www.sba.gov/strategiesforsuccess or on the SBA's YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/sba.

FUTURE PLANNING – Happy new decade! In a few days, we face the ending of the year’s and the decade’s last fiscal quarter. Naturally, this transition brings reviews of business enterprise value, market position and the direction of emerging trends. As you consider the future, find food for thought in future-oriented Web sites. To get started, visit the Resources for the Future's research topics at http://tinyurl.com/NEWDECADE and the Institute for the Future’s 2020 Sustainability Outlook map at http://tinyurl.com/2020SUSTAIN.

NEWS ITEMS WANTED! – Please send your business news items to Dave Byron, Volusia County Community Information Director, 123 W. Indiana Ave., DeLand, 32720-4612, by fax at (386) 822-5072 or by e-mail at dbyron@co.volusia.fl.us.

Department of Economic Development
700 Catalina Drive, Suite 200, Daytona Beach, FL 32114
Telephone: 386-248-8048   FAX: 386 238-4761   Toll Free: 800-554-3801